diamonds are forever..

I decided to make a commitment to finishing some UFO's - unfinished objects...When I was packing up to move I kept finding interesting stuff I had started and then got bored off or for some reason run out of motivation...

This quilt is one I started when we moved into Togston almost five years ago- its hand pieced using diamonds and squares and a mixture of mostly cotton green fabrics, some started as curtains and clothes and I ended up buying a bolt to add some extra pattern and the backing.  It took me many many long winter nights in front of rubbish television first cutting out the diamonds from old christmas cards and then tacking the fabric to each individual template and then sewing approx 500 pieces together. the quilt is  about 75 inches square and then after all that work - I just didn't like it at all any more!!! I think I just got bored with the colours and endless stitching... any way it got shelved for the next rainy day!

It went to live at the top of the stairs unfinished with the rest of the quilts (all finished and rotated round various beds from time to time)... About two years ago I got it out and put some wadding in and the backing on - I hadn't discovered spray on glue at this point so I got further frustrated and attached the three layers together using massive tacking - safety pins and a lot of rolling about on the floor - which incidentally wasn't really a big enough space to work.

Then this week - instead of rain I have been, as much of the country has been, snow bound  - still sorting out my new work space, unpacking those potential interesting bits and pieces I picked this UFO and decided to crack on and see if I could finish it off for our new bedroom.

This is my first time doing actual quilting on the sewing machine - it was quite challenging getting the massive amount of fabric to do what I wanted it to do but after a while I got the hang of it and managed to do random quilting on selected diamonds and squares and after a few hours of what I have to say was bordering on tedious it started to take shape and my enthusiasm picked up. I had to unpick odd bits where I wasn't happy with how the fabric lay and as I got towards the edges it got easier.  

I had used all the scraps when I'd been quilting to make a bias edging and that coupled with the trimmings from the finished quilt made enough for me to bind the edge - which was another fairly boring task but it finished it off very nicely and it looks really nice and is definitely back in favour. plus a great sense of achievement!!! 

Interestingly our new house is so warm and cosy we don't really need a quilt on the bed bit it does look nice!!!